The present disclosure relates generally to well drilling and hydrocarbon recovery operations and, more particularly, to systems and methods for estimation of intra-kerogen porosity from core pyrolysis and basin modeling data.
Existing well drilling operations require information on formation characteristics to aid in drilling decisions and wellbore placement. Recently, kerogen porosity has become a characteristic of interest, due in part to the increasing interest in source rock reservoirs. Kerogen comprises organic compounds that make up portions of sedimentary rocks, which through thermal maturation expel hydrocarbons. Kerogen porosity may refer generally to the hydrocarbon storage capacity of the formation. Typical methods for direct measurement of a formation's kerogen porosity include the use of scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Unfortunately, these techniques are time-consuming and expensive, and are typically not scalable to an entire formation or basin.
While embodiments of this disclosure have been depicted and described and are defined by reference to exemplary embodiments of the disclosure, such references do not imply a limitation on the disclosure, and no such limitation is to be inferred. The subject matter disclosed is capable of considerable modification, alteration, and equivalents in form and function, as will occur to those skilled in the pertinent art and having the benefit of this disclosure. The depicted and described embodiments of this disclosure are examples only, and not exhaustive of the scope of the disclosure.